Dehradun: Widespread showers in the plains and heavy snowfall in the higher reaches for second consecutive day pushed down the mercury in Uttarakhand on Tuesday.

Tehri received the maximum of 61.8 mm rains followed by Dehradun and Mussoorie which received 43.2 mm and 30 mm rains respectively, the MeT office in Dehradun said, adding the mercury dropped to 0.5 degree Celsius in Tehri.

Mukteshwar shivered at 1.2 degree Celsius. MeT office director Anand Sharma attributed the return of cold conditions in the state to western disturbance with trough in westerlies and induced cyclonic circulation near the desert state of Rajasthan.

Predicting similar weather conditions for the next few days, he said the temperature could see a further drop of 4-5 degrees and fog could envelop the plains. The hills above 3000 metres in Tehri and Pithoragarh district received snowfall, he said.